With Nancy J. Farrier
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| Bowl repaired with staples |
I have become fascinated by the art of kintsugi and thought
you might be interested in learning about this way of repairing the broken so
the cracks become a work of beauty. The art form traces back to 1500’s Japan.
The consensus seems to be that a Japanese shogun in the 15th
century had a treasured tea bowl that broke. He wanted the bowl repaired, but
the first repair was done with staples that detracted from the beauty of the bowl.
He then engaged another person to fix the bowl. This time the cracks were
filled with lacquer mixed with gold, which enhanced the original beauty of the
bowl. Thus the art of kintsugi was born.
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| Photo by Haragayato |
Kintsugi means, “golden joinery,” and the original lacquer
used came from the sap of the urushi tree. The sap is an irritant similar to
poison ivy or poison oak, so the artisan using this lacquer either often paid a
price to use the sap for repairs. Most wear gloves to protect the hands. (Once
the sap is processed and dried in the cracks it is no longer an irritant and
the person using the pottery item is safe from harm.) Those who worked with the
sap often built up an immunity to its harmful properties.
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| Lacquer Tree, photo by Aomorikuma |
While many artisans today, who perform repairs in the kintsugi
method, use a polymer fixative, there are some who adhere to the traditional
method. The Japanese lacquer is preferred by many for the higher content of urushiol,
the derivative of the sap of the urushi tree. Japanese lacquer has a 75%
content of urusiol where the Chinese lacquer has only 15%.
From my research, I discovered the crack, or break, is
repaired with the lacquer to make a stable bond. Then a mixture that contains
gold is put over the repaired crack to make what is often viewed as an ugly
crack into something beautiful. Instead of discarding a treasured item, we can
enjoy the renewed usefulness. Not only that, but we can share the story with people
who visit and see the repaired piece
Why am I so fascinated with kintsugi? So many times we are
wounded, or injured in some way by life. We are taught to hide those inner
injuries, or broken places, but this form of art teaches us that our past hurts
are not ugly, but can become a beautiful part of who we are. Instead of hiding
in shame, we can be an example to others and share healing with others who are
going through a similar difficulty.
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| Photo by A Kintsugi Life |
There are many places to purchase the supplies to do your
own kintsugi repairs. You can take classes to learn this ancient art, or even
watch videos online. If you have a treasured piece that you don’t want to throw
away, consider learning this art, or even having an artisan do the repair for
you. Some of the pictures I have contain links to shops that sell kintsugi
pieces, or offer to do repairs.
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| Photo by A Kintsugi Life |
What do you think of this art form? Have you had anything
broken that you would have liked to repair in this manner? Do you have broken
places in your life that could become places of beauty to help others? I would
love to hear from you. This month I am giving away a kintsugi necklace to
someone who leaves a comment answering one of the questions above. The winner
must be in the United States and must respond on the blog by midnight today.
For today's blog, I have been in contact with two businesses who have supplied photos and encouragement. Please take a moment and drop by their websites. Patty and Morty from Lakeside Pottery Studio provided more photos than I could use. They have some lovely kintsugi pottery available here. A Kintsugi Life owner, Kenetha, was thrilled to have me share some of her kintsugi jewelry pictures. She has some wonderful pieces on her website.
Nancy J Farrier is an award winning author who lives in
Southern California in the Mojave Desert. She loves the Southwest with its
interesting historical past. Nancy and her husband have five children and two
grandsons. When Nancy isn’t writing, she loves to read, do needlecraft, play
with her cats, and spend time with her family. Nancy is represented by Karen
Ball of The Steve Laube Literary Agency. You can read more about Nancy and her
books on her website: nancyjfarrier.com.
